Deamon Song
by Vanya-Atma
Summary: In a parallel universe Deamons are at war, all it takes is for one miscalculation and suddenly deamons become real. Follow the adventure of unique characters and their pokemon! Rated M for blood, gore, language and later sexual themes. A/U, OC.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One - A Star Falls

Author Note: AU Pokemon. 18+ for blood, gore, language, sexual themes. Set in a world that I have made on my own with Original Characters.

* * *

I was raised by the ocean with the sun on my skin and the wind playing through my hair. The Ocean was my best friend and I could out swim the Tentacool. My father had built his own hut on the shore line, made from driftwood and palm ferns, he only ate from the sea and walked the beaches for shells and other nick-nacks that washed ashore. The most recent item in my fathers collection was an egg that had washed ashore a fortnight ago, he barely left its side for fear it will hatch without him there, or worse get stolen by some scavenging pokemon.

My toes sank into soft sand as I wound my way down the beach, I could see the small hut in the distance, a plume of smoke coming from the chimney, father was preparing the fire for our dinner. I dragged a handful of Krabbys in a net that we'd caught from our nets that we frequently placed out in the shallows. They had a sweet meat once cooked and paired perfectly with the corn I'd traded from the market place the week before.

Three Wingulls had been following me for the better half of my walk, they had seen what I'd dragged from depths and were hoping I was the sharing kind. I'd throw them the shells to pick on but nothing more, we tried not to feed the wildlife.

My fathers Corphish clacked it's claws together at seeing me, it was perched outside the hut under the porch where it usually liked to sleep. The Corphish wasn't tamed, no pokeball was attached to it, instead my father had healed it when it had washed ashore with many injuries and had bonded with it over the years and the crayfish chose to stay here of it's own accord.

That's what my father and I did, we saved injured Pokemon, healing them to the best of our ability and then we released them into the wild again. Some Pokemon staid for a while longer, but eventually they all slipped back into the ocean. The call of the wild to strong without the Pokeballs control.

"hello, Cor." I greet, waving at it's dancing claws. "Is my father home?" I asked even though I knew he would be. Corphish gargled his response as I walked into the hut even though I couldn't understand him.

"Father? I asked, peering into the darkness, he chose not to open the windows and the stoves door was shut tight.

"Yes…" A bump from something hard and then . "Ow.!"

"Father are you ok?" I asked, peering into the darkness, it wasn't a large space, but there were many corners in which my father could have been .

"Ahh, I just hit my head." I finally saw his lanky form in the back, beside the bookshelf, where he had made a make shift nest for the egg. We didn't know what would hatch, but my father told me it would be soon.

"Just knocked my noggin a little bit, I'll be fine." He walked towards me still rubbing his head where he'd hit it. His long brown hair was highlighted by the sun and I didn't think it had ever seen a brush, it stuck up in ways that I never thought imaginable. A rugged bears seemed to eat his facial features, leaving only sea green eyes set bellow bushy eyebrows.

"I have dinner."

"O yes. What did we catch today?"

"Just crab, the slug and lobster nets were all empty, the oceans have been lazy lately."

"Ocean Mothers bounty is plentiful enough for the two of us, don't you worry your little heart out, Once this egg hatches all will be right."

I shook my head as my father stopped in front of the burning stove. He'd been losing his mind more and more lately.

I left the crabs inside for my father, he liked to cook himself, said the kitchen is no place for a lady.

The Corphish had fallen asleep half way in the sand and snored softly. We had no other Pokemon in our care at the moment, it had been a slow few weeks. My father and I took in any Pokemon that needed rehabilitation, and other than a Psyduck that I had found half drown a few days before we'd had no visitors.

Outside there was enough driftwood to last for months, it never become too chilly here, winter didn't reach us in this region, while there had been no storms lately, so there was no front yard to clean. I could work on the seashell necklaces and bracelets that we sold at the local market, but instead I walked to the shoreline and let my toes get tickled by the waves.

I was almost eighteen and had nothing to show for it. I stayed here to take care of my father, I'd had no schooling past high school, plus I had never tried to be a Pokemon tamer. Most days I was happy with how we lived but sometimes, I wondered if there was something more I should have been doing with my life.

Clouds were quickly rolling in, a storm brewed in the horizon while the light faded from the sun. The week before I'd patched up any holes in the roof so I wasn't concerned of the rain to come. Instead I sat my butt in the sand and watched the storm simmer. Birds flew from the storm, seeking shelter from it's anger while in the distance I could make out the sleek lines of some water pokemon playing in the crashing waves. Whatever they were, when the storm got too bad they would dive deep to avoid it.

In the clouds a dark shadow emerged, blacker then the clouds and huge, far bigger than the other birds. I stood, squinting my eyes, it was flying towards the beach whatever it was. Giant wings pounding hard at the air. It was flying swiftly, though erratically in the sky. Dipping every few strokes as if it could barely keeps itself in the air.

I stood, peering deeply into the sky with squinted eyes. The form grew closer and with it was obsidian flesh and huge, bat like wings. green flames could be seen and I knew instantly that a very powerful Pokemon was headed my way. In just a few heartbeats the Pokemon was crashing into the sand just a few meters from the house sending up a spray of sand. I ran, yelling for my father as I did so. I doubted father would come even if he heard me, he wouldn't leave that egg. without pause I flew over the sands, my heels digging into the soft ground.

"Are you alright?" My words were swallowed by the rumbling of thunder. "I'm coming!"

As I ran I could make out deep black blood seeping into the sand, there was so much of it, the Pokemon was gravely injured. Coming to it's head I saw how huge the beast really was. I'd only seen a few charizards in my life time, usually at the towns center during holidays when more than just the locals gathered, this beast was at least twice as large as the ones I'd seen before, and colored differently than even the ones I'd seen in books. There were no more flames coming from the black flyers mouth, I didn't know what that meant. It's eyes were closed, I couldn't panic, though I wanted to, instead I stole a moment to gather my thoughts. A deep gash was down it's belly, from where pale intestines shinned in the clashing of lightning. It's chest rose with shallow breaths so I knew it wasn't dead. Half a dozen other wounds could be seen from where I stood but I didn't doubt that there were more. Whatever trouble this thing had gotten itself into... the Charizard had fought for its life.

The reason why my father and I saved pokemon like we could was because we had some kind of what I called magic inside of us. We could heal, it took a lot from us, but after some days of lots of food and sleep we were fine. I had never tried to take one something like this though. Inhaling sharply I raised my hands and then closed my eyes. Rain was starting to drizzle and it was only a matter of time before the storm came full force.

From deepwithin myself I called my power, letting a zinging energy release from the pot in which it stored itself.

 _'You can do this.'_ I thought and then opened my eyes. A green glow pulsed from between my palms, sparks of magic bursting shortly from its center like fireworks. Steeling myself I readied for the pain. The moment I placed my hands on the cold scales of the fallen dragon I screamed, I screamed long and hard till I could scream no more. This was the payment we had to forfeit, we took the pain inside ourselves and healed the wounds. Never, never before had I experienced so much pain. White, hot, blinding. But I would not relent, I would beat this and come out on top in the end. When the darkness took me, I welcomed it.

* * *

I awoke almost drowning in the rain. Every nerve ending screamed in pain while it felt as though I'd been kicked in the guts a million times over, and then some.

"We owe you our lives." A thickly accented male voice was saying. Though he sounded muffled by the blood racing through my ears.

"W..w…" But I couldn't speak, my throat was raw as if a sand-file had been taken to it.

Blinking to readjust my eyes I found myself staring into golden eyes, the pupils slightly slitted. A fine splatter of dark blood marred beautifully handsome features while a dark shadow carved his jaw from a beard that was starting to grow. Twin horns protruded from above his temples reminded me of the rams that roamed the high hills. But I knew I was hallucinating, no human looked like that. My eyes fell closed again, I could only hope that once I awoke again I would no longer be in a mirage.

* * *

"Daughter of mine, wake up now." My fathers voice drifted through the dark fog of my sleep, forcing my eyes to open I was glad that we were in the deep dark of the hut.

"Ahh, my love, you awake finally." He hovered over me like a mother hen. Lifting my neck slightly he offered me a cup filled with cold water. The water was nice against my soar throat and I greedily drank it all without a breath.

"What happened?" I asked finding a long blank memory as to how I ended up on the floor in the hut. My voice was scratchy and hoarse.

"You my darling healed quite the lovely Pokemon, they are outside, too large, much too large to fit inside."

"Who?" I asked but then the memories hit me, blood, wounds, storm, Charizard, me healing, the screaming, the pain.

"Are you well enough to rise?" My father asked but did not wait for me to answer, instead he helped me to my feet. My stomach groaned, nauseated while my limbs were stiff and tender. We hobbled to the door, My father taking on most of my weight. At the door though he pushed me outside, unwilling to leave his egg for too long. I leaned against the side of the house for support, limping slowly. The storm had died, leaving a light grey sky clear of clouds. I'd been out for a while.

Down the beach from the house a little ways a dragon with green flames who stood looking out over the ocean with a man who wore horns like a crown.

"I can't come to you." I whispered out hoarsely, unable to raise my voice any higher, I didn't need to though, the man heard me and turned, looking at me with golden hued eyes. He started up the beach while I lowered myself to the sand, folding my legs together, my arms shook while my breath came in short puffs, if I didn't rest I would pass out.

A long shadow loomed over me a moment later and I tilted my head back to meet the mans face. He had shoulder length black hair that shimmered with deep blues. Warm tan skin clear of any blemishes surrounded his eyes which were deep set with gently arched brows over them. His jaw was etched and strong, his nose long but complimenting of his features.

"Hello." I greeted, smiling with my eyes. "Would you like to have a seat?"

He dropped in front of me, kneeling rather than sitting. He wore black leather clothes that was much like armor with thick stitches and silver chain mail protecting his chest. "I want to thank you, you saved Lich with much suffering to yourself and your father wants nothing in return. He would be dead without you healing him." The thick accent was one I'd never heard before, coming from plump lips and canines that were longer than a humans.

"What are you?" I asked, tilting my head curiously to the side, I couldn't stop stairing at the man.

"That is a long story." He replied, watching me just as much as I watched him.

"I have time on my hand." I replied shakily.

"It is a fantastical story." He stated bluntly. But I just blinked my eyes at him, patient.

"I will start with where I am from," And so this man who was really a Deamon told me a story that I would not have believed had I been more closed minded.

He came from a land that was far away, actually not in this dimension apparently, a land where there were Pokemon, similar but unique, different than ours. He hailed from a region called Herior. His country was at war with a different dimension, at war with a people who had ruined their own world and wanted his. He'd been at the front lines with many of his brethren when portals opened behind them, hundreds of portals, the enemy came on land and air, flanked on both sides, many died, mostly his people. On the brink of losing the battle they opened their own portals, fleeing. Somehow he had ended up here, in our realm though.

"Do you think more of your people ended up here?" I asked, the soft sounds of the ocean a soothing backdrop to our conversation.

"I believe so," He nodded his chin. "I hope so. I will search for them, they might have ended up anywhere on this beach or worse in the ocean."

I paused for a moment, it looked like he was deep in thought, he'd told me a lot, I had a lot to take in, but as long as I didn't think on his words too deeply I wouldn't go insane.

"Can I offer you some food before you go?" I offered, attempting to raise myself to my feet. Every part of me shook with the effort, from my toes to my nose.

"I would appreciate that." Then before I knew what was happening warm hands wrapped themselves around my hips and were lifting me to my feet as if I weighd no more than a feather.

Living on the beach like a hermit where my only contact with another person was when my father patted me on the back had not prepaired me for the feeling that surged through me. My breath slipped out from between my teeth in a hiss, it was a pained sound and the Deamon released me quickly. But it was no physical pain that had caused the sound, no, it had been one of new sensations. Reaching out to steady myself against the hut I raised my eyes and saw how truly tall this man was. At least half way over six feet, he towered over me.

"I, never got your name." I stumbled out after an awkward moment of silence.

"You may call me Viranchi." He replied, the sun playing off the gold in his eyes.

"Bray, my name is Bray." With that I hobbled away on unsteady legs.

* * *

We ate left overs from the night before, not anything hardy, but enough to quench the hunger. Fathers Corphish had slipped into the ocean to try and snap some kind of meal for the dragon, though Viranchi had assured me that his Pokemon was not hungry.

I sat outside by a small fire Viranchi had made, slowly chewing the sweet crab meat, father had mumbled something about the egg hatching soon and did not want to join us, not that I was surprised by his answer.

Lich, Viranchi's Charizard slept fitfully by the fire, with Viranchi resting his back against the dragons belly. There were no scars, not even softened scales to reveal the fact that the beast had almost been dead just a few hours before.

"I've never healed a wound so large before." I said, watching the green fire of the dragon quietly burn along it's jaw line.

"I thought we would both be dead, I don't know how Lich flew as far as he did and threw the storm with his injuries." Viranchi replied. "I wasn't any better…"

"What do you mean? You look perfect." I interrupted, my fork halfway to my mouth.

"I guess I'll explain that as well," Viranchi was finished with his plate now, I wish we had more to offer, but we simply didn't have it. "You saved my life that night as well."

Viranchi gathered his legs under himself and stood, shaking the sand from his pants. Without warning he lifted his shirt, revealing hard, tanned skin over hard muscle. A fine dusting of hair covered some of his stomach, but some was missing, it was missing where a pale line bisected his abdomen, from left hip past where he revealed. "When you healed Lich, you also healed me."

My eyebrows rose into my hair line, disbelief clearly on my features. "How? I don't understand." I hadn't even known the man had been with the dragon when I'd started last night.

He lowered his shirt once more and sat across from me. "I don't really understand either. Though I have drawn up some conclusions."

No longer hungry I placed my still half full plate to the sand, I'd throw it to the gulls later. "You know how you can bond a pokemon to a pokeball?" He asked, to which I nodded my head.

"Well Deamons bond with their pokemon with their souls," Once again I was taken aback by the small facts that Viranchi told me about his people. "We don't just bond with any Pokemon, once we bond with them we share a piece of ourselves, and them with us. It's a bonding for life. The Pokemon has to choose you as well."

"That sounds beautiful." I say, looking to where Lich snored softly in the sand. Such a huge beast, what it must have felt like to not only choose a partner but have them choose you.

"I believe that when you healed Lich, you healed me as well."

My eyes shot to his golden ones. "I've never tried healing a…" I paused because I was going to say human, but he was not. "Man before." I finished.

"Regardless, we have rested enough, I need to find if there are others." Lich opened his eyes for the first time since we'd gathered around the fire, his crimson pools reflected the fire as if he himself had a burning ember inside of him.

"Will you be back?" I ask.

"This won't be the last time you see me Bray."

I watched the Deamon mount his companion, he sat upon the dragon as if he belonged nowhere else. They swiftly lifted into the air, the Charizards wings powerful and sure. They flew into the evening sky,towards the setting sun.

There was a little sting in my heart watching them leave, I'd cherish this memory my entire life.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two - Beach monger

That night I couldn't sleep, I felt better after father brewed me some of his healing tea. But still sleep did not come to me. I laid in my bed, it was so soft I sunk inches into the material, and stared at the ceiling, not really seeing anything. Faint moon light filtered through the window by my bed, casting my small corner in muted grays. There was a curtain that cut off my small space from the rest of the single room, but it didn't cut out the sound of fathers snores.

I slipped out of bed, the wood floors cool against my bare feet and shoved on a heavy, thread bare sweater that would fight off the worst of the cold winds that the ocean brought in. The door creaked as I opened it but father and his Corphish would not awake unless seriously prompted to.

The sea rolled with light, playing with the moon, grays, blacks, whites. I would never tire of the beauty.

All was silent besides of the music of the ocean, rolling waves crashing against the sand, the wind whistling on the wave caps.

I walked the beach, thinking of golden eyes and obsidian horns.

The stars were twinkling in a clear, depthless sky when the sound of someone talking was brought to me on the wind. It wasn't unusual for the townsfolk to come to the beach, they just usually didn't come in the middle of the night. Curious I continued on, my hair billowing behind me like a pale flag.

The voice became distinctly feminine the further down I went. I still could not see who the voice belonged to but words were becoming clearer.

"God damn, mother…."

A lithe female was walking, tall and reed like, long dark hair fighting with the slow wind.

"Hello!" I yelled, waving a hand in the air.

"O thank the heavens!" The female stated and picked up her pace, jogging down the sands towards me. "I have been wandering the beach for the better half of forever!"

The thing that I noticed first about the woman was that she had long, pale horns that arched slightly backwards, they were probably two feet in length and were tipped with some kind of elegant jewels that jingled with every step. She wore the same black leather armor that Viranchi had been clad in, though hers was much more feminine. She stood just bellow six feet, with sharp features and pale skin, her eyes were big and expressive, dark in the night.

"You're a Deamon!" I huffed out because I had started to jog towards her as well.

"Well, looks like you know something that I'm interested in. How'd you know what I am?" She had the same deep accent as Viranchi, with a rich husky quality to it.

"Viranchi just left to look for the rest of his team," I replied, excited that I'd be able to help another Deamon. "I'm assuming you're one of his team members."

"That I am." She says, pointing to herself with a big grin that bared long canines. "If he left which way did he go?"

Maybe I wouldn't be such a help. "He flew west, back into the sea. Though I don't know exactly where."

"He's probably flying back to where the portals emptied us," She looked out into the water, though there would be no hope of finding what she was looking for any time soon. "is there somewhere close I can get some grub at and a quick nap? My Keama had her wing ripped in the battle, she can't fly anymore. I gotta re-up my reserves to heal her. The only way I even made it to the shore was from Vilai pulling me through the waves, the storm was a bitch."

"Uh, yea, you can follow me."

* * *

Fathers Corphish had dragged back a small Barboach for Viranchi's Lich but had returned too late for the dragon to eat. We had already smoked it over a fire, so as to not waist the food. Helloia had snatched the fish from her plate and ate like a starving dog, she probably could have down much more than I'd offered, but I was not feeling well enough just yet to check the ocean nets.

"I should have saved enough for you." Helloia said, licking the remains of the fish juices from her fingers.

"I already ate, but the thought was nice." I smiled.

"So, how long was Viranchi here for? We got separated coming through the portal, in which we were supposed to have ended up in Herior, how we ended up here, I'm not quite sure."

"His Lich was gravely wounded, I saw him crash into the shore line just this last night. He stayed only long enough for some food and then was off just before the sun set this night." I settled deeper into my seat around the fire, digging my legs into the sand to fend of the chill.

"If his Lich was wounded then how did they leave just this evening?" Helloia asked, sounding concerned.

"Well, I… I guess I healed him." I stumbled out, twisting my hands together.

"What do you mean?" Helloia peered at me with narrowed eyes, in the fire light I could make out there color which was a blue so deep they were like the depths of the ocean that I could not swim to. "You didn't take Lich to what you people call a Center? Because if you did then all of your world would find out and that's a bad thing, a ver…"

I raised a hand, cutting her off. "No." I shook my head. "I really mean I healed Lich."

Her arched brows rose in question. "I didn't think you humans had any magic like that."

I shrugged a shoulder. "I don't know if it's magic, I just know that I can heal Pokemon." And inadvertently Deamons.

"Will you try to heal my Keama?" Helloia asked, clapping her palms together excitedly. "I can heal, but I'm afraid I need to recover before I can attempt, my healing skills are piss poor on a good day." Her excitement sobered. "And it kills me to know that Keama is in pain."

I was still weak from healing Lich but I nodded my chin, the least I could do was try.

Helloias Keama was a Noivern, a Pokemon I'd only seen once before. The bat like creature barely held itself up, using it's good appendage to hold most of it's weight. Even with her body hunched over she was at least eight feet in height, probably more like ten or twelve with the ears erect. The Pokemon from the Deamon realms all seemed larger, as if they'd been given some kind of super food. She was mainly black, but her ears and the skin of her wings was a soft, puff pink. Big dark eyes looked down me without expression, she had to be in a lot of pain.

"O my poor little smoochums." Helloia fretted like a mother hen, running her hands over the soft hairs that covered the main portion of the Noiverns body.

"Where did Keama come from?" I asked, once the cooing stopped. I hadn't seen a Pokeball.

There were tears in the Deamons eyes when she turned to me. "I'll show you."

Stepping back from her Noivern, Helloia raised her hands to where a zipper kept her leather armor together, She zipped it down, revealing a soft shirt the same shade of pink as her Keama's ears. I expected her to maybe have a hidden pocket that she kept her Pokeballs but no, instead she grasped the collar of her shirt and pulled it down, revealing lush cleavage.

"These stones are like your Pokeballs." She stated, and I was surprised to find that I was blushing from seeing so much of another female. I shook myself from the initial shock and realized that she had small stones embedded into her flesh, right above the swell of her left breast. There were six stones in total, each a deep crimson color and no larger than an inch each in diameter.

"We bond with our Pokemon instead of capturing them like you humans do." I flinched a little at the way she said human, as if it was something bad. Helloia didn't seem to notice. Instead she continued on. "With just a thought I can summon Keama, while when she is inside of the stone, she can talk to me,mentally, and any other Pokemon I have bonded with."

I'd never had one of my own Pokemon, I couldn't even imagine what it was like to bond with another being so closely...

"But will you please heal Keama now? She is in so much pain."

I breathed in deeply, gathering my resolve. "Don't touch me when I start screaming ok."

This would be painful, I was sure, but at least the Pokemon would feel nothing. I just wanted to reassure Helloia that I wasn't going insane when I started to heal her Pokemon.

"Are you..." Helloia started but I raised a hand to cut off whatever she was about to say. Then I went to work, closely examining the wing.

Keama's right wing had been torn, the thin membrane didn't hold up well to claws or teeth. The blood around the wound had clotted, I'd never tried to mend something so fragile but I had a strong streak of firsts going right now.

When I searched within myself for what I now considered my magic I found that the pot as I described it was full again, zapping with stored energy. When I brushed against the power with my mind I felt a zing of pleasure. In the dark of the night my magic was beautiful, more than just green, deep inside the glow of my palms were colors I'd never noticed before, blues, yellows, oranges, all swirling together against my skin.

"I'll try my best." I whispered, then placed my hands against the soft fur that covered Keama.

* * *

I still tasted blood from where I'd bit my lip, but I had not passed out. My body screamed at me every time I so much as moved a finger while black spots dotted my vision.

"O my..." Helloia sounded awstruck and when I looked up at her from where I'd fallen on the ground she was looking at her hands as if she expected them to sprout hair or something just as weird. "I feel... I feel..."

"Did I heal you too?" I coughed out, my throat was a desert.

"I..I think so..." Keama called out happily, her voice echoing threw the quiet night and making me wince against the high pitch.

"How is this even possible?" Helloia asked.

"I don't know." I replied slowly. "This happened with Viranchi as well."

"This is amazing," Helloia lowered herself to the sand next to me. "you're amazing."

My mirthless laugh was followed by a pained groan. "Thanks."

"Can I help you?"

I shook my head. "No, I just need time. And you need to go help Viranchi."

"But... I..."

I mustered the strength for a smile. "Go, I'll be fine,"

"Thank you. Thank you so much, I'll never forget this."

And for the second time I watched a Deamon disappear into the endless sky.

* * *

"Can you go check the nets?" My fathers voice broke through my dreamless sleep.

"Jesus!" I exclaim the moment I open my eyes, my father had crouched himself directly next to my face.

"The egg will hatch soon and..." I tuned my father out as a rubbed the sleep from my face.

"Yes father, let me get dressed and I will go."

"Very nice, yes, very nice." Father muttered as he slipped back out of my little room to leave me to what I had to do.

A strong light filtered through my window as I dressed, I'd slept a long time. My back was stiff and my bladder cried out at me but at least the majority of the pain had dispersed. I quickly put on a black tank top and cream shorts, forgoing undergarments because I'd be swimming and would just be getting wet. The few bathing suits that I owned were piled in the corner of my room, needing a wash. We didn't have electricity, or really any modern necessities besides a sink and toilet, which I quickly used. I washed my fathers clothes and mine in the fresh water river that wound into the ocean about a ten minute walk from the hut. I just hadn't had a chance to get up there lately. I quickly

I didn't see father when I walked out of my room, but I didn't look for him either. The sun glared at me when I opened the front door and I raised my hand to block the rays. It was hot and a fine sheen of sweat soon kissed my skin as I walked down the beach towards the first set of nets. There was a weird feeling inside of me, to have such an eventful last two days and then to be thrown back into the usual routine as if nothing had happened.

The water was refreshing as I dived into the depths, thick seaweed covered most of the seabed, while pods of Wishiwashi and Alomomola swam with the currents. Down at the bottom was my net, set to allow pokemon inside but not out. It was a curious way that my father and I lived, saving Pokemon who needed the help and yet killing the Pokemon stupid enough to be caught by our traps.

A Wimpod scuttled in the net, having already eaten the bait I'd set in their. Dragging the twenty pound pokemon back to the beach was a chore, but I was a strong swimmer and could hold my breath for minutes at a time.

My second net was empty but the third held a trove of food, half a dozen Pyukumuku had squeezed themselves into the opening. When I started to lift them from the ground they released a mass of mucus that trailed from the holes in the net like snot.

* * *

"I'm going into town." I tell my father after I filled the fifth glass bottle with Pyukumuku mucus, the clear fluid healed sun burns and sold quickly in a beach side town like Spring Beach.

"Very good." Was all my father said from his corner of the hut.

My clothes had dried on the walk back from gathering, and I really didn't have any other options to change into so I simply grabbed my backpack, carefully filling it with the items I had for trade. Then I slipped on my only good pair of shoes and once again walked outside of the home.

The closer I walked to town the more people I saw, the beach goers didn't pay much attention to me, too occupied with their vacation. My first stop was at a little shop called 'Sharpedos Shack' that was owned by a man who'd seen more years than I could take a guess at. He'd never told me his age and wouldn't admit to his true age when I guessed.

"Good afternoon Mr. Hickomo." I greeted as the bell above the front door rang.

"Ah, a wonderful surprise my girl, I haven't seen you lately." Mr. Hickomo appeared from behind one of the shelves in his shop, he sold all the oddball items a beach goer would need from towels to surfboards. His hair was as pale as bleached bones, though he still had a full head of it. He spent many hours in the sun and his skin was like leather with thick age lines. He was stood about my height, five feet and a few inches, though in his prime he'd been five eight, or so he claimed. His clothes were the usual tourist kind, he said it attracted more sales if he wore the shirts he sold. The one he wore today was a bright blue like the ocean with palm treed covering every inch. "I sold the last of your bracelets just the other day and with the influx of tourists, I wanted a new stock of them."

He beckoned me deeper into his shop with a wave of his hand, offering me one of the beach chairs he had set up by his register. "Can I offer you anything? Water? Coconut milk?"

I settled myself in the chair, feet up to recline. "Are you going to charge me?" I could play his game.

"A special price of course. Discounted, like you were family." Mr. Hickomo smiled, showing off the few teeth he had left.

I laughed, the cheeky old man. "A water would be nice, though I can't believe you charge your family members for a water."

"We all have to make a living." He replied as he went to the cooler to grab my drink.

Once he was back with the ice cold water bottle I shifted to take out some of the items that I thought he would be interested in from my backpack.

"How much for the lot of them?" Old man asked after he had carefully examined each bracelet.

"Four hundred." I stated blandly, examining my nails as if I hadn't just priced my items at double what I'd been selling them to him before.

"Wh...bu...n..." Mr. Hickomo stumbled over his own tongue. "No! Little girl you over estimate your craftsmanship."

I shrugged a shoulder, feigning indifference. "We all have to make a living and you are family."

The old man guffawed. "Two hundred and fifty and no more!"

His offer surprised me because the last time I had come here he swore he'd never pay a penny more than two hundred. The influx of tourists must have been very lucrative for him. Made me wonder how much he was reselling my items for.

A soft sigh left my lips while I started to pack away the ten bracelets I'd offered, slowly of course.

"Wait..."I paused, trying my hardest to keep a smile off my face. "Two hundred and fifty plus fifty worth of store goods."

Obviously the old man over priced his in house items because tourists would buy anything on a vacation, but it would be nice to pick up some new items for myself that were of quality.

"You got yourself a deal old man!" I exclaimed letting the grin color my lips.

Fifteen minutes later I walked out of the Sharpedos Shack with two hundred and fifty dollars and a bathing suit. The white two piece had been obscenely over priced but I'd been looking at it for months now, the ivory would look amazing against my tan skin and would compliment the blond of my hair and blue of my eyes.

Mr. Homoko had been so preoccupied by my bracelets that he had forgotten to charge me for the water, not that I was going to remind him.

The rest of my day went similarly, knowing that it was tourist season gave me an edge over the other stores. But I had to be smart at buying the items that I needed because they had the same mind set.

The sun was long gone when I made it home, My pack was heavy with trade items while a few other plastic bags had been tied to the outside of it to carry everything that would not fit inside.

My stomach growled at me as I slipped inside the hut, I'd traded for a few granola bars but I'd eaten them hours ago for lunch. Father was asleep, I could hear his snores, and after checking the stove I saw that he hadn't left me anything for dinner. He'd probably forgotten, taking care of the egg like he was.

And so I went to bed hungry.

* * *

I had never thought about changing the way I lived my life so much as I did the next seven days. My days were unsurprisingly the same, routine. I would wake up, eat, go to the nets, search the beach, work on nick-nacks, eat, sleep and repeat. Sure there were small differences from my day to day, but nothing like the thrill I had felt with the Deamons.

Viranchi had said that we would see each other again, but he had to have found the portal because he had not returned. I had even traveled the beaches further and further each day in the hopes that I would either see him or perhaps a member of his lost party. But it was surprisingly quiet.

I was struggling with a net filled with two Remoraids, they were obscenely heavy for a fish, when I heard voices. I was still down the beach, my home hidden by sand dunes, but I would recognize the accent anywhere. Remoraids forgotten I ran, excitement searing my heart.

Lich was easily the first seen, standing like a true monster at above eighteen feet tall, including the three protruding horns from his head, but the next one I noticed was Viranchi, his back was turned to me.

For some reason I was so unbelievably happy to see him. "Viranchi!" I called out, but then I was next to him, and then hugging him, my arms wrapped around his middle.

"Bray!" Helloia exclaimed, her voice was like music to my ears.

I couldn't stop the girlish giggles that I released as I grinned up at Viranchi. "I didn't think that I'd see you again." Viranchi wasn't smiling at me with his lips, but I could see a spark of something in his molten eyes.

I realized I had probably been hanging onto the Deamon for longer than was appropriate, I didn't even know if I was supposed to touch a Deamon, so with another smile I released him.

"This is the girl you were telling us about?" A booming voice snorted out and I noticed for the first time that there were Deamons here I had not seen before. The Man who had spoken was as big as he was tall with muscles wrapped around muscles. His horns were big and winding and the color of sulfur, the right one was shorter than the left, as if it had been broken at one point. His hair was shaved, revealing red runes in the space between his horns. "She is tiny, barely bigger than the shits I take!" He roared with laughter and I felt myself turning red from embarrassment.

"Comments like that are the reason why you're going to be single the rest of your life Demuous." Helloia snorted. "Excuse my brute of a brother, he was dropped on his head one too many times as a child."

"At least I have an excu..."

"Enough!" I jumped at the sound of Viranchi's voice, the tone with which he used was not one I'd heard from him before and frankly it was terrifying. A soft hand was placed against my back and I almost jumped again, but I saw that it was Helloia, she smiled down at me as I looked up at her with wide eyes.

I was introduced to the three other Deamons. The first being a white haired Deamon named Braxes, everything about him reminded me of snow, from his pale horns that wrapped towards the center of his forehead to his creepy grey eyes that seemed as if he was blind. Helloia assured me he could see very clearly. Preixa was simply breath take, with her dainty facial features, long lavender hair and blood red eyes, Her horns were tiny and stuck strait up to the sky from the perch of her foreheads, they were the same color as her hair. And she was closer to my height than any other Deamon, standing at Five feet and seven inches.

"Are those Antlers?" I had to ask when introduced to the last of the small team.

"They are but Eldar doesn't like to be considered a Deer." Deamuous snorted, to which the red haired Deamon snarled at him. The sound was animalistic and had Helloia or Viranchi not been with me I would have felt fear. "They're not exactly fierce."

"If he murders you in your sleep, I will not shed a tear for the loss of you." Helloia stated blandly, I was the only one who laughed.

"We need a place to stay for a few days, until we can reopen a portal." Viranchi spoke, and it took me a moment to realize that he was asking if his people and he could use my home as a base of sorts.

"I can't offer you much." I answered, eyes dropping to the sand in shame. I had never been ashamed of where I came from, not even when the other kids in school had made fun of me but I felt that now."I wish I could, but we don't..."

A hand grabbed my shoulder, lifting my eyes to where golden ones weighed heavily down on me. "We need nothing more than a safe place to plan."

I smiled but it didn't reach my eyes. "Of course you can stay here."


End file.
